Random Access

Monday – 07 September 2009
It’s been a good four-day weekend. There have been just about equal rounds of productivity and laziness. That makes for a good weekend, I think.

<< Rewind <<
After running errands on Friday – one of which took me to the office… twice! – I had a quiet afternoon and evening. Clitorati was good, both the company and the conversations. Also of note: Borders’ Cafe now has a Hazelnut Mocha, which is pretty tasty.

Saturday, SaraRules and I got up, went out for breakfast and headed to…

(click for pictures)

It was a few days shy of the second anniversary of our second date… which also happened to be at Hogle Zoo. We got to see the new Amur Tiger and Snow Leopard cubs, as well as a giraffe calf.

After the zoo, we had lunch, stopped in to see Kate, Perry and the kids and then hooked up with some of the usual suspects to check out Gamer. I thought it was a decent – but not awesome – movie, that made a couple of interesting points about gamer culture and society. SaraRules did not like this movie. In fact, she said that she’d consider seeing either The Spirit or Transformers: RotF again before seeing this again… and she hated both of them. That said, if you’re looking for much more than shoot-em-up fare, you might want to skip this one.

Saturday evening was quiet, with SaraRules doing some quilting and me cutting new tiles for new WWG maps.

Sunday, SaraRules got up early-ish to go help her father work on the new/replacement deck he’s building. I got up a little later and headed over to help. We got the deck and the lower trim finished; I’m not sure if the next step will be railings or steps. Fortunately, it’s not my decision to make – I’m just there for the heavy lifting. After the deck-building, I popped into Paragon City for a little bit. As of a couple of weeks ago, I’ve been a CoH member for four years. Where does the time go? After gaming, we (SaraRules, the in-laws-to-be, and I) watched The Mist. Not bad, if a little cheesy at points. And the ending…? Well, let’s just say that it wasn’t “completely” telegraphed, but you could see the proverbial writing on the wall.

> Play >
Today, we slept in. After breakfast, we set about doing a bit of cleaning. (The dining room looks like a “room” again, not just a storage depot.) Next up, we visited the Utah Museum of Natural History. SaraRules hadn’t been there in many moons and I had never been. It was a nice place. Their featured exhibit is called “Toadally Frogs,” which reminded us of a smaller version of the exhibit we saw at the National Aquarium in Baltimore last year. After that, we had dinner at Charlie Chow’s. (A huge “Thanks!” to SaraRules for taking one for the team so that I could have Chinese food!)

Tomorrow, back to the work-a-day grind.

Stray Toasters

• Thanks to shockpuppet and for making sure that I get my LEGO fix:
  • All Things LEGO. Except for LEGO Bricks.
  • Turning to Hollywood Tie-Ins, LEGO Thinks Beyond the Brick
• The NFL regular season kicks off Thursday night with Tennessee at Pittsburgh.
• Laura Bush praises Obama, bemoans excessive partisanship
• Steampunk remixes from b3ta
• I had a couple of revelations about prepping tiles for TerrainLinx yesterday:
  1. I need to make a TON of tiles for this new system…
  2. Once I trim the foamcore down to the sizes I need (6″x6″, 6″x3″ and 3″x3″), prepping it  for use as tiles is actually easier if I don’t use the FoamWerks cutting tools. And it’s much faster, too.
• MarknTyme pointed out the following: Arby’s Serves Up Paper JLA in Upcoming Kids’ Meals
  (Like I need more papercraft things around here…)
• I did, however, find more papercraft arcade games, which may or may not find their way into other builds I do.
• Rapper Ludacris, dealership give away 20 cars to drivers in need
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot…?!” file: Damien Hirst installation owner charges teen art-rival with theft of £500000 for removing box of pencils from installation

That’s good for now.

Namaste.

Tuesday – 01 September 2009
First day of the month; the year is just moving right along. And, to top it all off, this heads up a short week, too. I’m trying to decide whether it’s going to be a four- or five-day weekend. I’m sorely tempted to take next Tuesday off, as well. We shall see.

Last night was my night to cook dinner. I wasn’t entirely sure what I wanted to do when I left work; by the time I got home, I had not only an idea… I had a plan, as well. I fired up the grill and set about putting my insidious plot in motion. I thawed a couple of chicken breasts, made a dry rub for them, applied said seasoning and then slapped ’em on the grill. Next up, a can of cream of mushroom soup went on the stove. When the soup was ready, I added two cups of rice and let it sit. Back to the bird. While waiting for the chicken to cook through, I watched Monday Night Football through the screen door. When the chicken was done, I brought it inside, pulled a green leaf salad out of the fridge and it was dinner time.  I was pleased with how well the chicken turned out – nicely spiced on the outside, tender and juicy inside.

After the game, SaraRules quilted for a bit while I surfed and geeked.

Football Update
The Vikings traveled to The Lone Star State to take on the Texans in Reliant Stadium.

Minnesota Vikings at Houston Texans
17 – 10

This game had a few notable features:

1. Minnesota QB Brett Favre, under center, for the first half three quarters of the game.
2. RB Adrian Peterson (yes, that one).  ‘Nuff said.
3. RB Chester Taylor put up a number of good runs for the Vikings offense.
4. Texans’ QB Matt Shaub looked decent… but a little fragile, at times.

This was  good (preseason) Monday night game. Both teams showed up to play. Favre, only scheduled to play the first half, stayed in the game through most of the third quarter. He looked good on the field – solid passes, set up good runs and even threw a couple of blocks.

One more week of preseason and then the real deal kicks off.  Amen.

Workout
Wes and I got in a late workout today… but that’s still better than no workout at all!

• Calf Raises: 3 sets/10 reps, 100 lbs
• Sit-ups (with twist): 3 sets/20 reps
• T-Bar Pull (barbell): 3 sets/10 reps, 85 lbs
• Bench Press: 3 sets/10 reps each, 225 lbs/205 lbs/185 lbs
• Compound Row: 3 sets/12 reps, 125 lbs
• Chest Press: 3 sets/10 reps, 95 lbs
• Lat Pulldowns: 3 sets/10 reps, 120 lbs
• Fly: 3 sets/10 reps – 2 sets @ 100 lbs, 1 set @ 120 lbs

Weight (morning): 183.0 lbs

Stray Toasters

• There’s a new look to The Late Late Show – it’s in HD now – and comes complete with an updated opening and theme song.
• I have the new WWG Himmelveil: Streets and Himmelveil: Sewers sets!
  (Next on the list: Building a 3D version of the WizKids’ Arkham Asylum map…)
• Digital Dharma
• The latest version of Game Center on NFL.com is taking some getting used to, but I’m liking it.
• Both Newsarama and Comic Book Resources have had good coverage of the Disney acquisition of Marvel.
  • The Misney Universe – Our Favorite Disney/Marvel Mashups
• Twisted Princess
• 
• Sales Decline Accelerates at Borders
• I’m having ramen for lunch. It’s “Oriental Flavor,” which happens to be my favorite… but I started wondering something just before I started eating:
  1. What exactly is “oriental flavor?”
  2. Who determined that this is what the Orient tastes like?
  3. HOW did he determine that this is what the Orient tastes like?
• Fall Bacontern
• The Olsens Don Bunny Ears: Who Looks The Most Ridiculous in Their Animal Ears?

Namaste.

Monday – 31 August 2009
It’s not only the first of the work week; it’s the last day of August.

It was a good – and relatively quiet/lazy – weekend. Saturday, after hanging out with Perry, I headed home and just chilled. When SaraRules came home from her bridal shower, she took some time to tell me how it went and show me what she had received. It sounded like it was quite a bit of fun (independently verified later by shockpuppet). A little later, we strolled over to Target and Red Mango; I’m getting used to the original (plain) yogurt flavor, but I still miss the Green Tea flavor.

Back at home, I started working on my ‘Clix house, while SaraRules quilted and put on a movie. She had pulled up Lifeboat on Netflix Instant Queue. I stopped working on the house and watched the movie. It is the story of nine survivors of a torpedo attack against a Merchant Marine ship in a lifeboat, adrift in the Atlantic Ocean. Add to the mix one German naval officer (from the sub that fired the torpedo and was subsequently sunk). Short on food. Short on water. And tempers and attitudes getting shorter by the day. The movie provided an interesting look at the lengths people would go to in order to survive.

Sunday, I slept in. Way in. 1100 in. (Of course, given that I didn’t get to bed until after 0400, it’s not a stretch.) After lounging about for hours, I got in gear. I did a little cleaning and then set about taking pics of the now-complete ‘Clix house (link to full gallery is just below the thumbnails). I stopped at Beans & Brews for a cup of frozen mocha goodness before heading up to SaraRules’ parents’ for dinner and football. After the game, we headed home and watched part of the “Caves” episode Planet Earth.

Football Update
The Ravens played the Panthers on Saturday… and won. They’re now 3-0 in preseason. I know most people don’t think that preseason play really counts much, but I’m not one of those people.

Yesterday’s match-up pitted the Chicago Bears against the Denver Broncos, in Denver.

Chicago Bears at Denver Broncos
27 – 17

This game had a few notable features:

1. Jay Cutler’s return to Denver, following his trade to Chicago.
2. Kyle (Go Boilers!) Orton’s first game against the Bears since his trade to Denver.
3. Chicago RB Adrian Peterson. (No, not that one… this one.)

I don’t know where Chicago’s been keeping their Adrian Peterson, but his performance last night was impressive. When Chicago needed yards on a short run, he was there. Long run…? He was there. He came up with 68 yards in 12 carries. Yeah, looks like someone is looking for a first string slot.

*** In a “You Heard It Here First” prognostication: Given Mr. Peterson’s performance – and how he performs in the next preseason game and during the regular season – I am willing to bet that you will be seeing some “Adrian Peterson (CHI) vs. Adrian Peterson (MIN)” ads in the next few weeks.

Stray Toasters

• Today’s big comic-related news: Disney to buy comic book powerhouse Marvel
  • Confirmed by BBC News
  • …and Mightygodking has something to say, as well.
    
• I really need to replace my Ethernet cord at work.
• Denny Unger, CEO/Designer at WorldWorksGames, has released mostly-complete version of the TerrainLinx instructions (.pdf in .zip file). All I can say is “Wow…”
• A few weeks ago, I mentioned that James “Captain Slow” May, of BBC’s Top Gear, was planning on building a house out of LEGO bricks. According to an entry on Gizmodo: The LEGO House Looks Beautiful from the Outside, Too
• 
• London bus with 16 CCTV cameras inside
  (Big Brother really is watching you.)
• Friday Flashback: Spidey and Friends
• Texting Toddlers, How Young Is Too Young?
• Something is buggered with Safari on Defiant, but it only really seems to appear when I am trying to browse my site’s directory tree. So, back to Firefox for me… at least for the time being.
• How Science Reporting Works
• 
• Damn Dirty Zombies 4: HOLY CRAP, SUPERMAN JUST PUNCHED HIS FACE OFF!

Namaste.

Saturday – 29 August 2009
The morning started earlier than it should have as called this morning. While there was a breach of “The 10 O’Clock Rule,” she was the harbinger of good tidings: Our rings are ready. Earlier than expected, but a nice surprise.

I immediately went back to bed. A few hours later, at a more reasonable hour, I got up. Not sure what I’m doing with the rest of the day, but I’m most likely heading out for poker tonight.

Yesterday, and I headed downtown to pick up copies of Snow Leopard. SaraRules, taking a lunch break, met us at the Apple Store. The three of use went to The Counter for lunch. They offer custom-built burgers, but not just beef, they also offer turkey, veggie and grilled chicken. Between the meat, bun and topping offerings, diners can make over 300,000 combinations. It was a little more pricey than we’d expected, but well worth it.

Stray Toasters

• Great Geek Debates: Stormtrooper vs. Redshirt
• By way of MarknTyme: Classiest Star Wars Action Figure Displays You’ve Ever Seen
• Alien Resurrection is on FX. Not a “great” movie, but they just hit my favorite scene: The body banks in the med-lab, where the failed Ripley clones were kept.
• Io9 Smackdown: Who’s TV’s Biggest Badass of All Time
• NASA’s Most Awesomely Weird Mission Patches
• 
• 10 TV Shows That Should Never, Ever Be Made Into Movies
• From Comic Book Resources: DC Universe Online’s Green Lantern Revealed

  

• Garlic and Herb Pita Chips from Whole Foods == far more addictively tasty than they should be
• A New Look at Brain Control

Namaste.

Friday – 28 August 2009
Welcome to the weekend… well, almost the weekend. It’s my “On” Friday, but I’m off next Friday… which will kick off a four-day weekend, thanks to Labor Day. And, as the first one in the bullpen today, I kicked off the morning with Tank! and 2112. That’s not such a bad way to start the morning.

Last night, SaraRules and I went to dinner at Cafe Zupas; it was a nice change of pace. I had the Honey Bacon Club panini and the Shrimp and Sausage Gumbo; SaraRules had the Thai Peanut Chicken Salad and the Yucatan Chicken Tortilla Soup.

After dinner, we met SaraRules’ coworker – and former schoolmate – Melissa at the gym for a workout:

• Calf Raises – 3 sets/10 reps, 100 lbs
• Leg Curls – 3 sets/10 reps, 70 lbs
• Leg Extensions – 3 sets/10 reps, 70 lbs
• Lower Back Extensions – 3 sets/10 reps
• Bench Press – 3 sets/10 reps, 185 lbs
• Sit-ups (incline) – 3 sets/10 reps
• Curls (dumbbell) – 3 sets/10 reps, 25 lbs
• Tricep Extensions (rope) – 3 sets/15 reps, 50 lbs
• Core (plank) – 3 sets, 45 seconds

Stray Toasters

• and I are heading out to get Snow Leopard in a little bit.
• I’m  torn about what I want to get from WWG before TerrainLinx hits on Tuesday.
• ‘Where the Wild Things Are’ cupcakes
• Homeland Security Changes Laptop Search Policy
• The Dolphins – my #2 AFC team – beat the Bucs last night, 10 – 6.  This makes me happy.
• Annotated ‘Walking Dead’ Google Map
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot..?!” file: Policeman busted for feeding Pop Tarts to gorillas
• Microsoft Officially Lowers the Price of Xbox 360 Systems

Yeah, that’ll do for now.

Namaste.

Thursday – 27 August 2009
Last night, after going to pick up this week’s comics, SaraRules surprised me with dinner at Rodizio Grill. And, as it was “Wild Wednesday” at Rodizio, they featured a couple of exotic meats: Alligator Sausage and Elk. Very filling. Very tasty. Repeat after me: “Food coma.” (But, it was oh, so very worth it…)

Once again, there’s a long list o’ books in this week’s Four-Color Coverage, so I’m going to post it after Stray Toasters.

Stray Toasters

• I completely spaced off the fact that our reps from Avocent were coming to the office this morning.
• And after that, back-to-back meetings.  YAY!
• and I are following the yellow brick road to the Emerald City Apple Store to get copies of Snow Leopard tomorrow.
• California to hold “garage sale”
• Microsoft apologizes for changing race in photo
• Denny and the folks at WorldWorks Games just put out a teaser video for their new TerrainLinx system, which is supposed to drop in a few days.

  The first system is going to be in their Himmelveil line, which is mainly for fantasy gaming, but can be easily used to represent European construction/architecture. And, as good as this set looks, I can’t wait to see what they do with their modern “Urban Mayhem” sets…

• …and, to top things off, they’re having a 20% off sale on regularly-price catalog items between now and the 31st. *sigh*
• Museum’s “moon rock” is just a rock
• Kidnapped California Girl Comes Forward 18 Years Later
• My gym partners can’t go to the gym this afternoon, so it looks like I’m going later this evening.

Four-Color Coverage
Lots of goodies on the list this week. So, without further ado:

• Batman and Robin #3 – For all of his claims that he’s “not Bruce,” Dick Grayson sure pulls an eerily similar Batman when he wants to. Robin the Boy Hostage Wonder is up to his domino mask in trouble, but he has a plan. And they come up with info about Progessor Pyg’s nefarious scheme for Gotham City… but what can they do about it?

  

• Blackest Night
  • Blackest Night: Titans #1 (of 3) – On Heroes Day, the Titans take time to remember and honor their dead. (And, let’s face it: There are a LOT of dead Titans…) Beast Boy and Starfire share different viewpoints about Terra‘s tenure with the team. Shortly after that, he goes for a stroll along the beach… and winds up meeting an unexpected visitor. (“Unexpected” as long as you didn’t see the cover of the issue.) And, the black rings start to appear. Looks like it’s going to be a busy (Blackest) Night for the Titans.

    

  • Green Lantern #45 – Star Sapphires and The Sinestro Corps battle of the Sapphires’ homeworld of Zamaron. When Sinestro himself crashes the party, who steps up to call him out: Carol Ferris – it’s a serious, no bars hold “Game on” for these two. Any guesses what happens when some formerly deceased Sinestro Corps members show up… sporting black rings? And does anyone care to lay odds on what happens when Agent Orange gets an unexpected visit from [SPOILER DELETED]?

    

• Buck Rogers #3 – This book just continues to be fun. And a good read. Scott Beatty has a good sense for  pacing the story and continues to balance telling a story in two time periods: The 21st Century and the 25th Century. And, I think that my favorite line from the issue has to be:
  

  Who says no one can hear you scream in space?

  It was the perfect follow-up to the sequence that preceded it. If you’re not reading this book, you are missing out.

  

• Codename: Patriot
  • Superman #691 – Mon-El takes on Metallo, Reactron and Miribai under the streets of Metropolis, while General Lane opens the throttle on Project 7734.

    

  • Superman’s Pal: Jimmy Olsen Special #2 – Jimmy finds someone else with information about Project 7734. [SPOILER DELETED] drops in for a visit… but, are they friend or foe?

    

• Fantastic Four #570 – Jonathan Hickman and Dale Eaglesham have taken over writing and art duties, and they’ve set up an interesting story line that appears to involve the Marvel Multiverse once again… AND it even links back to Reed’s tie to Civil Bore War. But, the stories best moments for this issue came when the FF wasn’t busy busting heads, but rather when they were just being a family.

  

• The Flash: Rebirth #4 – As if he wasn’t doing enough with the Green Lantern Corps (and seemingly every other book in the DCU), Geoff Johns rewrites the book on The Flash. Eobard Thawne, also known as Professor Zoom ,the original Reverse-Flash, is back. And class is in session. Thawne gives Barry Allen a lesson in history. And pain. Next on the syllabus: Loss. Also, Max Mercury gives Barry a lesson in what the Speed Force really is. The question is: How quick a study is Barry Allen? (Does the nickname “The Fastest Man Alive” mean anything?  Yeah, it does.)

  

• Justice Society of America #30 – This issue was… well… “okay.” I didn’t really find it great, but it wasn’t a complete throw-away issue, either. It was mediocre. To be honest: It was the last 8 pages that “saved” this issue for me. Not so much because they were utterly amazing, but more because they lay the groundwork for a couple of plots that look promising.

  

• The Last Days of Animal Man #4 (of 6) – After three issues of trying to figure out what’s wrong with his powers – and getting his butt handed to him by Bloodrage and Prismatik – Buddy Baker has a couple of realizations and makes a decision.

  

• Ms. Marvel #44 – If Norman Osborn has Ms. Marvel in custody, then who’s in the lobby of Avengers Tower? He wants answers. And, he’s not the only one.

  

• The New Avengers #56 – On tonight’s episode of Shaq vs “Mockingbird vs,” most of the Avengers are down and Mockingbird takes on The Wrecking Crew… and a few of their friends. Norman Osborn – the hardest working man in show business superheroing – plays Let’s Make a Deal. Oddly enough, so does someone else. Who’s going to make the better deal?

  

• New Mutants #4 – Let’s see… David Haller, Professor Xavier’s son, is back. His psyche is as splintered as ever. And it’s up to the New Mutants to keep him busy until the X-Men arrive. That’s not going to be an easy feat considering that: Karma and Magik are MIA, Dani Moonstar is (still) de-powered and Cannonball is having doubts about his abilities as team leader.   The last page – especially the last panel – makes the whole issue worthwhile.

  

• Wonder Woman #35 – Diana and Dinah (Black Canary), between fights in Roulette’s underground fight club, hang out in Tokyo. While this take on Dinah still doesn’t seem to match up exactly with what I’ve come to expect from the character, I was able to find a lot of the character I remembered in this issue. Meanwhile, Diana finds a sparring partner who is able to give her a challenge.

  

Namaste.

Wednesday – 26 August 2009
Midweek and all’s well.
And, it’s Comics Wednesday; whether or not it involves any sushi remains to be seen.

Last night was a low-key, stay-at-home kind of evening. SaraRules and I caught an episode of NCIS that we hadn’t seen before from two seasons ago; that was pretty cool. After that, we watched Shaq vs. In last night’s episode, Shaq challenged two-time Olympic gold medalists Misty May-Treanor and Kerri Walsh to a game of beach volleyball.

It. Was. Pure. Comedy.

Shaq, with his usual swagger, issued his challenge and then set about training… kind of… for the event. At stake: If he lost, he had to walk down Hermosa Beach in a bright pink Speedo, with “Shaq” printed on the back. He consulted Serena Williams for tips on the female athelete mindset. Then, he checked in with a few members of the U.S. Men’s Volleyball Team, for some coaching and to pick a teammate – Todd Rogers. The episode was fun to watch and made a nice summer off-season filler. If you’re interested in checking out the episode, you can see it – in its entirety – at the Shaq vs link, above.

Stray Toasters

• I had ice cream last night for a snack, since we didn’t have any ice cream at the office yesterday.
  suggested “More swearing = more ice cream”
  (He makes a good point, though…)
• Senator Edward Kennedy dies at 77
• The Unofficial Thomas Pynchon Guide to Los Angeles
• 
• pointed out: Steam Car Breaks World Speed Record at 140 mph
• Microsoft in web photo racism row
• 
• By way of Paul (coworker) – not to be confused with Paul (boss) – comes: TK409
• posted a link to a really good look at why Superman “works” – and/or doesn’t work – for some people as a character: This Issue: SUPERMAN DOESN’T DIE.
  *** I recommend reading this to both comics and non-comics fans.… except possibly l.
• Defiant has music once again!
• sent a link to: Poodle doodles: Dogs are transformed into pandas, horses and even snails in a barking mad grooming craze
  Words fail…
• Tactical Canned Bacon (You just can’t make something like this up.)

Namaste.

Tuesday – 25 August 2009
Last night was the first of the three times that the Ravens will appear on Monday Night Football this (pre-)season. They hosted the New York Jets at M&T Bank Stadium.

New York Jets at Baltimore Ravens
23 – 24
The first quarter of the game most decidedly belonged to the Ravens’ defense.  Haloti Ngata picked off a Mark Sanchez pass and returned it for a touchdown; on the next series, Ray Lewis nearly picked off another Sanchez pass. RB Ray Rice ran in a three-yard touchdown, to give the Ravens a 14-0 lead at the end of the first quarter.The second and third quarters were a little more favorable to New York, seeing them put 17 points on the board, while Baltimore was only able to capitalize on a Jameel McClain interception. In the fourth, the Jets pulled within one point of tying the Ravens, and opted to run a two-point conversion for the go-ahead win, with roughly 30 seconds left in the quarter. The attempt failed and Baltimore walked away with the win.

Workout
Wes and I hit the gym for a lunchtime workout:

• Calf Raises: 3 sets/10 reps, 100 lbs
• Leg Extensions: 3 sets/10 reps, 70 lbs
• Leg Curls: 3 sets/10 reps, 70 lbs
• Sit-ups (incline): 3 sets/20 reps
• Bench Press: 3 sets/10 reps – 1 set each: 225 lbs, 205 lbs, 185 lbs
• Lat Pull-downs: 3 sets/10 reps, 120 lbs
• Pectoral Fly: 3 sets/10 reps, 100 lbs – with 10 second hold on 10th rep
• Lower Back Extensions: 3 sets/10 reps

Weight (morning): 184.5 lbs

Stray Toasters

• There seems to be far too much blood in my caffeinestream today.
• Free cake!
  (Now, if we only had some ice cream to go with it…)
• 
• This isn’t quite “steampunk,” but I’m sure that it could be easily adapted.
• Don’t get me wrong
  If I split, like light refracted…
• While its name is built a good pun, I have also found that Dawn of the Lead is an interesting  and well put-together site (mostly) about zombie miniatures and gaming.
• 1000 surveillance cameras = 1 solved crime in the UK
• 
• Street Magic Wedding Proposal
• Behind the 4GB Memory Limit in 32-Bit Windows

Namaste.

Friday – 21 August 2009
Waking up this morning was something of a chore. I think that my first alarm went off for about 15 or 20 seconds before my brain found a couple of brain cells to rub together and come up with “a clue” as to what it was and what to do about it. Then, I went back to sleep.

The second alarm, the one I had to get out of bed to deal with, went a little better. I got up, turned it off and plopped down on the sofa for a few. Motivation to start the day, however, was still close to nil. Fifteen or so minutes later, I managed to pry myself from the comfort of the couch and begin the morning preparation rituals.

Last night saw the premiere of Project Runway on Lifetime. This made for a very happy SaraRules, as it wasn’t just Project Runway, it was a trio of shows:

1. Project Runway All-Star Challenge
2. Project Runway (Season Six Premiere)
3. Models of the Runway (Series Premiere)

Yes, a happy SaraRules, indeed. And, in a surprise turn of events, the person we both liked the least on Project Runway was the first one voted off the show.

While she watched the shows, I worked on interior props for my ‘Clix house. So far, the bathrooms are done – sink, tub and toilet in one; sink and toilet in the other. Now, I need to do beds and dressers for the bedrooms and some living room and kitchen furniture, too.

Stray Toasters

• Matt Mullenweg on Starting a Bank
• Accused champion Semenya not a gender cheat, says manager
• Free Download: Tribute to The Clash’s Sandinista
• Superman/Batman: Public Enemies is the next feature to be released in the DC Animation line. Newsarama has interviews with a couple of the voice actors:
  • Levar Burton (Black Lightning)
  • John C. McGinley (Metallo)
• LED display technology gets a twist
• 12 most annoying types of Facebookers
• Don Cheadle talks ‘Iron Man 2’
• This is still my favorite XKCD strip:

  

• Black Superhero Luke Cage Ignites Marvel Comics
• American Nuns Suspicious of Vatican Probes
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot..?!” file: Food and wine as collateral for bank loans
• Steampunk Flash Drive

Namaste.

Thursday – 20 August 2009
Having a mid-week day off was a nice change of pace.

The only construction that I wound up doing on my ‘Clix building was adding the interior half-wall in the upstairs hallway. I did, however, start printing some props, including beds, dressers, bathtubs, toilets, and sinks.

Four-Color Coverage
This week’s take mostly featured Batman- and/or Superman-related titles. That didn’t stop it from being a good haul, mind you:

• Batgirl #1 – First, there was Barbara Gordon. Then, there was Cassandra Cain. Now there’s… well, just who is under the cowl? Someone old? Someone new? (Hint: It’s not someone borrowed or blue.) I figured it out just before the big reveal. And the last page..? Both perfect and fitting. All-in-all, it was a good first issue.

  

• Blackest Night: Superman #1 (of 3) – Kal-L, Superman of Earth-2, rises from his grave and goes home. To Smallville. The same Smallville where the Earth-1 Clark Kent and Conner Kent (Superboy) are enjoying dinner with Martha Kent. Let’s just say that the rhubarb pie dessert is going to have to wait. And, why is a Black Lantern ring flying through space near [SPOILER DELETED]?

  

• The Brave and the Bold #26 – Further cementing Dakota (formerly part of DC’s Milestone line) in the mainstream DC Universe, this issue see’s The Spectre teaming up with Xombi. Fair issue, for the most part, but its hints at possible “trouble in Paradise” for The Spectre add a brick or two to the count.

  

• Justice League of America #36 – Vixen is in charge of… well… what’s left of the JLA, with a special guest appearance from [SPOILER DELETED]. Roulette and Amos Fortune’s “game” goes another round. There was what seemed to be a bit of a retcon to the origin of the Royal Flush Gang, as well. I was rather pleased to note that Vixen was shown to rather strong-willed, as evidenced not only in her conversation with [SPOILER DELETED], but also in the way she refused to accept any backtalk from Dr. Light, after assigning her a mission partner that she didn’t like/want. On the “down” side, I wasn’t really taken by this issue’s artwork and the overall story was mediocre.

  

• The Middleman: The Doomsday Armageddon Apocalypse – This issue wraps up the story originally started in The Middleman: The Trade Paperback Imperative and continued in the too-short-lived television series -in fact, it picks right up from the last aired episode. The artwork has changed a bit, but the good stuff is still there in the writing. Reading the issue, it was easy to hear Matt Keeslar and Natalie Morales’ voices as The Middleman and Wendy Watson. This was a fun, quirky read and a fitting end to the series… or, at least, this incarnation of it. Here’s hoping that we are treated to more tales from O2STK in the future.

  

• The Mighty Avengers #28 – Stature clues in that things with the Scarlet Witch aren’t as hunky-dory as they seem. Now, if she could only get others to see it, too.

  

• Supergirl #44 – With a little information here and some misdirection there, General Lane and Project 7734 see the plans against Kryptonians move forward. Lois Lane decides there’s someone she doesn’t want to interview – and, no, it’s not Lex Luthor. Additionally, readers get to learn how Kryptonians (and Daxamites) play “Tag.”

  

• Superman Annual #14 – Mon-El has a problem. Well, other than the fact that his exposure to lead as a youth is killing him… again. He’s received a pair of (what appear to be) Sunstones that contain stories of ancient Daxam. But is it a story that he wants to hear? Also, after nearly fifty years, readers get a well-told… retelling (not exactly a retcon)… of how Mon-El Lar Gand met Clark Kent.

  

• Superman/Batman #63 -Who do you put your money on when only one man is left to fight against the absolute ruler of the world?
  

  “Grodd won. We lost. Gorilla Grodd now controls the mind of every person on Earth. Man, woman, child. Hero and villain.”

  If that “one man” is Batman, I’d say him. But, maybe I’m a little biased. I wasn’t incredibly thrilled about the artwork in this issue, but the story raised the bar significantly.

  

• Tiny Titans #19 – Tiny Titan Bumblebee and Terror Titan Plasmus discover there’s plenty to smile about when you have a friend to hang out with. This was not only a fun issue, but it was “terminally cute,” as well.

  

Stray Toasters

• There is far too much blood in my caffeinestream this morning. This must be remedied.
• Purdue ranks among nation’s top universities
• 25 Style Questions Answered in Seconds
• Poor design choices in the Star Wars universe
• sent along this bit of amusement:

  

• Zombaritaville – song lyrics rewritten as zombie tunes
• Haunted Mansion 40th Birthday Video
• 10 Car Ads That’ll Rev Your Engines

Quote of the Day
Tim Gunn was on Good Morning America and Live with Regis and Kelly yesterday morning; he was promoting the new season of Project Runway (starting tonight on Lifetime). Regis asked him what his number one suggestion was to people concerning fashion and style:

Accept responsibility for what you’re wearing. Since our clothes send a message about how the world perceives us – the semiotics of clothes – accept responsibility for the message you’re sending to the world.

Amen.

Namaste.

Wednesday – 19 August 2009
Welcome to 9/80 Comics (and possibly Sushi) Wednesday. That’s right, I said “9/80 Wednesday.” I’m off today, rather than Friday this week, as I’m going to be covering for loonybin88 – and apparently the rest of the IT team, as well – on Friday: He’s out of town, a couple of guys are at off-site training this week and my team is off this Friday.  Julie and I have already discussed the idea of bringing in movies for Friday. I can’t complain too much, because I’m getting a “weekend” in the middle of the week. Win-Win.

Last night, I thought that I was going to finish a working on my newest ‘Clix building. I came close, but I realized that something was missing. It turned out that it was a couple of somethings:

1. A wall texture in one of the bedrooms
2. The upstairs hallway looked… “off,” it needed a half-wall at the stairwell.

But, by the time I realized these things, SaraRules was already abed and I didn’t want to start printing things and disturb her sleep. Another thing to do is to top it all off and to put a roof on the whole thing.

Stray Toasters

• Confessions of a Comic Book Guy – That’s Just the Way Things Were
• Project Runway‘s new season kicks off tomorrow night. Tim Gunn was on Good Morning America and Live with Regis and Kelly this morning, promoting it.
• pointed me in the direction of Visualizing up to Ten Dimensions, which I had skipped looking at yesterday. I checked it out last night. It was pretty neat… and that’s coming from a guy whose relationship with classroom Physics could be described as “not necessarily the best.”
• Beloit College Mindset List
• One of my favorite LEGO-related sites, The Brothers Brick, has had some neat MoC postings lately:
  • Gears of Jelly – a steampunk jellyfish
  • Charlie and the Chocolate Factory is much less terrifying in LEGO
  • Terror of the Radio Waves
  • Spock’s Jellyfish
  • Microscale Star Trek fleet – including a tiny Defiant!
  • Take me out to the ballgame!
• 
• I just saw a commercial teaser for a new series on ABC called Eastwick. As in “The Witches of Eastwick.” According to a quick look at Wikipedia, it’s the third time a series has been attempted.
• The Problem with PowerPoint
• Sipping Spiders Through a Straw: Funny monster lyrics to traditional tunes
• 
• Sony Announces a Slimmer PS3
• I probably shouldn’t be as amused by Comcast’s Ben Stein/Shaquille O’Neal commercials as I am.
• Hope Diamond to get new setting for anniversary
• Can anyone stop Usain Bolt?!

Or even catch him!?

Inka Dinka Doo.

Namaste.

Tuesday – 18 August 2009
Another day in the mines.

Last night, SaraRules and I went to dinner at El Chihuahua. We ate. We talked. We watched football. After that, we ran a couple of errands – one of which involved a Hostess Fruit Pie (but perhaps I’ve said too much…) – and then headed home for a quiet evening in.

The management at our apartment complex is having some of the roads in the complex repaved. I think that this would be referred to as a “Charlie Foxtrot” in the military.

Football Update
The Panthers traveled to New York to take on the N.Y. Giants for their first preseason game. (GameCenter) They put on a… decent… showing. The first half was primarily the Giants’ half. Somewhere in the second half, the Panthers seemed to remember why they were there.

With under two minutes left in the game, QB Josh McCown executed a rather impressive drive that went in for a touchdown AND two-point conversion to tie the game at 17. The Giants had a chance to drive downfield, but couldn’t. On the first play of the Panthers’ next drive, McCown, setting up a pass play, had the ball knocked from his hand, which was recovered – in the air – by a Giants’ lineman and run back for the go-ahead winning touchdown… just as time ran out.

Carolina: 17
Giants: 24

And, in other gridiron news: Brett Favre is back in Minnesota…

Workout
Marci and I went to the gym this afternoon:

• Calf Raises: 3 sets/10 reps, 100 lbs
• Leg Extensions: 3 sets/10 reps, 70 lbs
• Leg Curls: 3 sets/10 reps, 70 lbs
• Sit-ups (incline): 3 sets/20 reps
• Bench Press: 3 sets/10 reps, 185 lbs
• Tricep Extensions (bar): 3 sets/12 reps, 80 lbs
• Curls (dumbbell, hammer grip): 3 sets/10 reps, 25 lbs
• Reverse Punches (dumbbell): 3 sets/10 lbs
  • Set 1: 20 reps
  • Set 2: 10 reps

Weight (morning): 184.5 lbs

Stray Toasters

• Last night, I was messaged by someone I haven’t spoken with in nearly five (5) years. It was a bit of a shock, pleasantly so… but surprising, nonetheless.
• By way of : While I Was Away

• IKEA Draper Crayfish Party
• Utah Museum of Fine Arts is holding a film and lecture series, beginning next week.
• Why Is PETA Making Fun of Fat Women?
• I’m a fan of Bobby McFerrin. Check out his rendition of The Pink Panther Theme
• Insanewiches
• Car 54 Jamar Nicholas, Where Are You?
• pointed this out to me: Do You Wanna Date My Avatar?

• Has the Spidey Musical been deep-sixed?
• But we’re never gonna survive
  Unless we are a little crazy…

Quote of the Day
Today’s quote is gleaned from a conversation I had last night with . He wanted to make sure that we were alright with Bit and Pixel being at the wedding ceremony (in the chapel, that is).  Duh – we only get to see them (or at least Bit, to this point) every so often; naturally, we want them there. That led to the following:

9:47:10 PM : aiiight so urchins ok, i’ll load them both up with nyquil.
9:47:21 PM : heh or mountain dew
9:47:24 PM : either way, fun at parties
9:47:26 PM : 🙂
9:47:59 PM : SaraRules: “How about one and one?”
9:48:06 PM : “He gets to pick which one.”
9:48:24 PM : hahaha ok awesome, Bit on mountain dew then.  i’ve been wanting to play with THAT shotgun for months.

Namaste.

Sunday – 16 August 2009
It’s cold cool – far cooler than one would expect for the middle of August in SLC. It’s 64°F and today’s projected high is only 74°F. But, it’s sunny, so there’s… something.

This morning has been lazy, so far. Just me, Defiant and the Interwebs. I should probably think about eating something in the next little while.

<< Rewind <<
Friday night, SaraRules and I went up to Park City to the Deer Valley Music Festival to hear the Utah Symphony perform Gershwin’s Rhapsody in Blue. It rained intermittently… but only for a couple of minutes at a time. Bizarre. The performance consisted of:

• Fanfare for the Common Man (Aaron Copland)
• Overture to Colas Breugnon (Dmitri Kabalevsky)
• Rhapsody in Blue (George Gershwin)
• Suite from Swan Lake, op. 20a (Peter Ilich Tchaikovsky)
• Appalachian Spring (Aaron Copland)

The featured pianist, for Rhapsody, was Edisher Savitsky. His take on Rhapsody was very interesting – he played some passages quite slowly, others were spritely and animated. But his performance was delightful.

Saturday morning, we met SaraRules’ parents, Logan and Sanaz (Logan’s girlfriend) for breakfast at Millcreek Cafe and Eggworks. I have driven past the cafe many times – on the way to/from Dr. Volt’s or Oh Sushi!, but I’ve never really thought twice about checking it out. That was my mistake. It was a nice place, with good food at reasonable prices.

Next up, we went to see District 9. All I can really say about the movie – without giving anything away – is “Wow.” I was duly impressed. I had avoided reading any reviews or commentary about the movie, so that I could go into it “cold” and without any prejudice. And I am pleased to say that it was the right call.

Chris called and asked if I wanted to play ‘Clix. (Hm, playing twice in one week…) I headed over to his place for some gaming. We played the Superman family (me) versus the Shazam family. It was a much closer fight than either of us really expected – it literally came down to “last man standing” on both sides: Superman (Justice League) for me, Shazam! (Unleashed, Kingdom Come). Chris’ Captain Marvel edged out Superman in the last turn for the win. It was a lot of fun and a battle that we’re considering playing again.

> Play >
There’s no preseason game today. Fortunately, NFL Network – which is quickly becoming one of my favorite channels – is rebroadcasting some of the past week’s games. Win-Win!

I’m not really sure what’s on tap for today. We’re most likely going to hit the gym at some point. And we’re having dinner with SaraRules’ family this evening.

Stray Toasters

• SaraRules starts a new job at Utah Symphony/Utah Opera tomorrow.
• Legion Blogpost: We’re Back! Who Are We?!
• Thai elephant gets artificial leg
• Do-It-Yourself Guru Makes Treasures from Trash
• Room to swing a cat? Hardly
• 
• ‘It Might Get Loud’ takes measure of 3 guitar heroes
• Woman ‘to join Iranian Cabinet’
• Taking the Great American Road Trip, Google-style
• Moderate drinking ‘boosts bones’

Namaste.

Thursday – 13 August 2009
This week has been cruising right along.

Happy Birthday to :

I also talked with last night. He informed me of the following:

• Bot and Pixel are doing well.
• Bit has a few new words. (And, yes, one of them is “Mama.”)
• Grandparents just don’t understand.

Reeling By on Celluloid: The Last King of Scotland
SaraRules and I watched this movie last nig.ht. It told the story of Idi Amin’s reign as “President for Life” of Uganda in the 1970s, from the point of view of his personal physician. Forest Whitaker portrayed Amin; James McAvoy portrayed Nicholas Garrigan, his doctor. After college, Garrigan goes to Uganda, looking to make a difference in the world. Through a random occurance, winds up meeting Amin, who has just ascended to power in a coup. From there the movie follows Garrigan as he becomes entangled in the complicated world of  Amin’s fight to maintain power and control.

The movie was very well done and didn’t pull any punches in bringing some of the horrors of President Amin’s rule to light. Forest Whitaker won the 2007 Oscar for Best Performance by an Actor in a Leading Role for this film and, watching his character’s progression from man of the people to a man caught up in his own cult of personality. All-in-all, it was an very good film and one quite worth watching.

Four-Color Coverage
This week had a number of good books… as did last week, which I didn’t list, because I was tromping through the woods of Idaho. So, this week will see a, or rather “another,” two-week compilation list:

Week of 05 August 09:

• Doom Patrol #1 – DC’s strangest heroes are back on the block. And they’ve got a new strange villainess to contend with. An interesting read and one that makes me curious to see if the next couple of issues turn this into a regular purchase.
  
• Justice League: Cry for Justice #2 (of 6) – The pieces and the players continue to come together in this offshoot League. It’s still moving a little slowly, but I’m going to bear it out, especially since it’s supposed to have (eventual) ramifications in the core JLA book.
  
• Superman: World of New Krypton #5 (of 12) – General Zod has been shot. New Krypton is in chaos. Superman and Supergirl head to Earth, hot on the heels of Zod’s attacker. (Wasn’t there something about the UN banning Kryptonians on Earth…?)
  
• Captain America: Reborn #2 – Steve Rogers continues to do his impression of Quantum Leap’s Dr. Sam Beckett. And, like Dr. Beckett, Cap is slowly coming to realize what’s happening to him. Unlike Dr. Beckett – and more like Queen – he realizes that “there’s nothing you can, nothing you can, nothing you can do about it.”
  
• Ultimatum
  • Ultimatum: Fantastic Four Requiem #1 and Ultimatum: X-Men Requiem #1 – Marvel’s Ultimate Universe was supposed to be the sandbox where writers and artists could take familiar characters and places and do things that they couldn’t get away with in the mainstream Marvel 616 Universe. And, in Ultimatum, they’ve done just that. These books present the aftermath of Magneto’s “Ultimatum Wave,” through which he caused upheaval on a global scale. While I wasn’t necessarily thrilled with some of the things they did, I have to give Marvel credit for redrawing the lines on the playing field.
    STORY:
    EXECUTION:
• Love and Capes #11 – Abby needs a new wedding dress. Marc whisks her off to Paris for a shopping trip with her sister, Charlotte. But, what happens when Abby not only finds “the perfect dress,” but also finds that it was made by Marc’s former flame, Amazonia?
  

Week of 12 August 09

• Adventure Comics #1/#504 – Superboy is back. He’s trying to put the pieces of his (former) life back together. Good thing that he’s got Martha Kent, the Teen Titans and Krypto – not to mention a certain “mild-mannered reporter” – there to help him out. This issue’s second feature includes the Legion of Super-Heroes. Kind of. More specifically, it features Starman and Tellus, who team up to fulfill the last will and testament of R.J. Brande, the LSH’s late benefactor.
  
• Blackest Night
  • Blackest Night #2 (of 8 ) – Commissioner and Barbara Gordon meet an unexpected visitor on GCPD’s rooftop. Black Lantern Aquaman schedules an impromptu family reunion. Green Lantern and the Flash set up for Round Two with Black Lanten Martian Manhunter… and wind up facing [SPOILER DELETED].
    
  • Blackest Night: Batman #1 (of 3) – The new Batman and Robin team up with not-a-Black Lantern Deadman to take on the newly reanimated [SPOILERS DELETED].
    
  • Blackest Night: Green Lantern Corps #39 – GLs Kyle Rayner and Guy Gardner are headed back to Oa when they meet up with Lanterns Soranik Natu and Iolande. It’s a quiet trip until they get passed by a swarm of Black Lantern rings… headed to Oa.
    
• R.E.B.E.L.S. #7 – Vril Dox reaches out to leaders of other worlds, seeking to form an alliance against Starro. While he makes some convincing points, let’s just say that he shouldn’t necessarily look for a second job in Sales.
  
• Luke Cage: Noir #1 (of 4) – Luke Cage, “The Power-Man,” gets the Marvel Noir treatment… and it’s a treat to read. Fresh out of prison, Cage is looking to renew some old connections and see how things have changed while he was away. Hopefully, he can learn who the players are… and who’s getting played.
  
• Action Comics #880 – Continuing from last week’s World of Krypton #5, Superman and Supergirl chase Ral-Dar, General Zod’s would-be assassin, to Earth… where they get a less-than-“warm” reception. Readers also learn a bit more about General Lane’s playmates.
  
• G-Man: Cape Crisis #1 (of 5) – School-aged hero, G-Man, hooks some of his friends up with the ability to fly. What could possibly go wrong when he tells them it’s time to come back to ground? This was both a great all-ages read and a refreshing change of pace – along the lines of Tiny Titans, but with a little more “meat” to the story.
  
• Uncanny X-Men #514 – As running the X-Men (all teams) and X-Force (the team that no one knows about) wasn’t enough, Cyclops puts together another team. Also, Emma Frost’s “Dark X-Men” do some good at saving citizens in the Bay Area. And it looks as if the Summers X-Men and the Frost X-Men are going to butt heads. Soon. On a personal note, it’s nice to see that Matt Fraction has a good handle on writing Cyclops. As my long-time favorite X-Men, I appreciate it when he’s written well – a bit conflicted and occasionally awkward, but always making plans and contingencies.
  

Stray Toasters

• I’ve got to do my “Goals and Accomplishments” for 2009. Yay.
• Steampunk butterfly
• Guitar, studio wizard Les Paul dies at 94
• Looking for a treat to satisfy your favorite snack-hungry zombies? Try Brain cupcakes.
• Do you eat the moldy stuff?
• 
• Euro-Area Economy Contracted 0.1% in Second Quarter
• From the “Whiskey Tango Foxtrot?!” file: Brazilian crime TV host ordered executions to boost ratings, cops say
• 
• I’m a Photographer, Not a Terrorist campaign for photographers’ rights

Yeah… that’s good for now.

Namaste.

Sunday – 09 August 09
We’re back.

We got in last night around 2230. We cut the trip short a day, because it rained most of the day on Friday, which played hob with fishing and made sitting around camp kind of… dull and boring. That’s not to say that we didn’t have a good time, though. The breakdown goes a little something like this:

Thursday (Pictures from Day 1)
We got up at 0510 to head to SaraRules’ parents’. For some reason, I didn’t get to bed until after 0200, so waking up was definitely hard to do. After a shower, I felt a little closer to human. We got to the house and waited for Logan, whose building had a power outage and screwed up his alarm.  We hit the road at 0730, bound for Idaho.

Given that I was “a little” tired from the previous night’s lack of sleep, I was out of it for most of the way to Pocatello. I woke up as we were turning off the highway to get breakfast. We ate and got back on the road. We made a quick stop in Blackfoot and then headed up to EBR-1. Again. Although, this time, it was open for touring. we spent about 45 minutes or so walking around (and taking pictures). On to Challis – we had to load up on spud-nuts (doughnuts, made with potato flour). And from there, on to Stanley and Redfish Lake.

Part of our job as the first car to leave was to find and secure a campsite. We did that. SaraRules and Logan were of the opinion that it was the same site they had two years ago. The main difference from last year’s site was that the toilets were much more basic than the ones in Glacierview: Pit toilets vs. flush toilets and sinks. *shrug* We set up the tents and generally got the campsite ready for the weekend. A little after Car 2 (with the Meliko and the ‘rents) showed up, it started raining. Steve set up “Alaska rigs” (tarps suspended in by ropes, draped over the tents and picnic bench); lo and behold, we stayed dry. For the most part. There was a small pool of water that collected at the corner of SaraRules and my tent. Meliko, Logan and I dug a small trench to divert the water – it worked fairly well.

Friday (Pictures from Day 2)
We woke up to intermittent rain. As that bode ill for fishing, we went to the Yankee Fork Gold Dredge again. It, too, was open for a tour. Looking at it last year, just from the exterior, it seemed rather amazing that the whole thing was run by just three (3) men. Seeing it from the inside made it seem all the more amazing. And, of course, I took a plethora of pictures. After that, we headed up to Custer and then SaraRules, Logan and Steve tried their hands at fishing… to no avail. We headed back to camp.

A while later, Logan and Steve decided to try again; SaraRules wanted to go to the hot springs. So we packed into the cars and off we went. Meliko went hiking around the area where Steve and Logan were fishing; Bonne came to the hot springs with SaraRules and me. I wasn’t entirely sure about this whole “sitting in a hot spring while it’s not terribly warm out” thing, as I’ve long looked askance at people who sit in hot tubs in the middle of winter. It just seemed… odd… to me. But, I did it. Trying to find the right mix of hot spring water and cold river water was a bit of a challenge, but we managed to do it. And it was fun.

Saturday (Pictures from Day 3)
Intermittent rain beset us again. We decided to break camp and head home. SaraRules, Logan and Steve decided to hit a couple of fishing spots before making the trek back to Utah. First stop, Indian Riffles. And, just before we got there, the sun came out. Go figure. The trio changed into fishin’ gear and hit the river. No dice. From there, we went back to the Yankee Fork. Once more into the fray… and this time, the fish came out to play – everyone caught something. Their fishing appetites sated, we started back to Salt Lake.

Instead of heading back through Arco and Pocatello, we came back via Sun Valley. This included a trip to the summit of Galena Summit. (Fortunately, Idaho believes in guard rails, unlike many areas of Utah…) We descended into Ketchum. We had lunch/dinner at Smoky Mountain Pizza and Pasta. The food was good and so was dessert – I had their Chocolate Ganache Cake and ice cream. A quick stop at Starbucks and we were on the road again.

We traveled through a couple of small – REALLY SMALL – towns and along some back-country two-lane roads before winding up in Paul, ID (a few miles from I-84, southeast of Twin Falls). Then, it was highway cruising. We were making good time until we got to Ogden, where there is construction. Lots of lane-constricting construction.

On the whole, I’d have to rate this year’s camping trip:

And that’s how I spent my summer vacation.

Today kicked off with sleeping in. Later, we headed over to SaraRules’ parents’ for brunch. After eating, we watched Black Sheep. It’s basically an Australian zombie sheep movie. And, yes, I know exactly how that sounded. This movie is definitely on the CW/LKG Scale.

(at least)

Tonight, I think we’ll have a quick trip down to the Garden of Sweden and then back home to watch some football. That’s right: Football. It’s the Hall of Fame Week game that kicks off four weeks of glorious preseason football.  Selah.

Stray Toasters

• Ray Charles covers Johnny Cash: Ring of Fire

• Gap founder’s amazing art collection may leave San Francisco
• I watched The Big Hit earlier. I haven’t seen this in a long time… but it’s fun. It’s on the CW/LKG Scale, but I’d rate it on the higher end of it.

  

• In a related note and comic trivia: Actress Lainie Kazan (who was in The Big Hit) was the visual inspiration for Big Barda.
• Eugene Roddenberry and the legacy of ‘Star Trek’
• 

• The Happiest Cartoonists of All Time
• Filmmaker John Hughes has died.

Namaste.